Carat India, the media agency from the house of Dentsu, has announced the appointment of Sanchayeeta Verma as Chief Executive Officer (CEO). She will report to Anita Kotwani, CEO Media, South Asia, Dentsu. She will lead new business opportunities, and nurture existing client relationships through operational excellence, becoming a trusted partner for clients. Verma will work in alignment with the network’s global brand proposition, further enhancing the revenue streams in India.
Anita Kotwani
Commenting on Verma’s appointment, Anita Kotwani, CEO Media, South Asia, Dentsu said: “The network’s focus on strengthening our media businesses aligns with our global ambition. Getting the best people on board is, therefore, very critical. Sanchayeeta’s ethos and the value systems that drive Carat are inextricably linked. Her varied expertise in consumer research, business planning, and client leadership has kept her abreast of the shifting media landscape. She is also dedicated to lifelong learning and staying ahead of the curve, making her an ideal candidate for this position. Carat has increased its scope over the recent year with notable wins such as Tata Neu, Tata Croma, Hero Vida, Times Pro, and others. Sanchayeeta will accelerate expansion and propel the Carat brand to the forefront of the Indian market.”
To encourage the development of Artificial Intelligence skills Intel partnered Nukkad By Stage for its campaign ‘Future Banao Wonderful’. The collaboration is done across all the platforms of Nukkad.
Anita Kotwani
Said Anita Kotwani, CEO- Carat, Intel’s media agency: “Lack of awareness among parents & students especially in tier II & III cities hinders the adoption of digital learning. We wanted to solve this category challenge and partnering with Nukkad helped us to connect with the audiences. Thanks to the strong vernacular support & reach of Nukkad, we were able to educate our audiences about the role of devices in digital learning.”
Runa Sinha
Added Runa Sinha, Vice President- Nukkad by Stage: “The association with Intel has been extremely impactful as the whole messaging thrusts upon the fact that relevant, progressive and informational content which is core to nukkad has been well received by the bharat audience across both the segments – Parents as well as senior students. It also signifies the fact that Bharat is looking forward to empowering themselves and enriching their lives through proper information-based content.”
Carat has bagged the media mandate for Croma, the retail chain for consumer electronics and durables. As per the mandate, Carat India will oversee the brand’s media planning and buying rights (Traditional + Digital).
Anita Kotwani
Commenting on the win, Anita Kotwani, CEO, Carat India said: “We are backed by a consumer understanding proprietary framework, Designing for People (DFP), which is strong & always relevant. It is inspired by design thinking which enables us to help brands with an in-depth understanding of their consumers. Our single-source consumer-connected system is the key differentiator in the Indian market. It has the ability to drive full-funnel client outcomes. Our ability to stay ahead of the curve in the tools and tech space by showcasing a unified holistic view of the consumers has been a key tenet that helped us clinch the business.”
Shibashish Roy
Added Shibashish Roy, Chief Business Officer (eCommerce & Marketing), Croma – Infiniti Retail: “We are expanding our presence in India by strengthening our omnichannel proposition with digital initiatives and aggressive store expansion plans. We look forward to working with Carat India as our media planning partner to further build on the Croma brand.”
To further strengthen its leadership team, Carat India has appointed Vasim Rakhangi as Associate Vice President – Strategy for North and East.
In his new role, Rakhangi’s core focus will be to spearhead and deliver integrated media strategy to the agency’s existing clients across the regions. He will report into Anita Kotwani, CEO, Carat India.
Commenting on the appointment, Kotwani said: “With his extensive experience and passion, Vasim will help our clients stay ahead of the curve, especially as he helps them demystify the complex digital media landscape. One of his focus areas will be, to translate the disruption of video and the future of measurement to the consumers’ dynamically changing needs and, how the role of data, privacy, and technology impact their business. Vasim’s remit in our North market will encompass Phillips Domestic Appliances, Microsoft, Mastercard, Havells, and the DS Group amongst others, as he also works with our local teams to drive growth for both North and East markets.”
Carat India, the flagship media agency from the house of Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN), has roped in Anita Kotwani as its chief executive officer (CEO).
Kotwani was until recently at Mindshare India where she held the position of Senior Vice President, New Business and Client Lead, The Walt Disney Business. In a career spanning more than two decades, 16 of which have been with Mindshare, Kotwani has been instrumental in leading client relationships for brands such as the ABG, Kellogg, ICICI Group, Facebook, Byju and The Walt Disney Company amongst others, for the West zone. Additionally, she has also helped build diversified offerings across data, digital and content, driving exponential growth for Mindshare India over the last two years.
Kartik Iyer
She will report to Kartik Iyer, President Media Brands and Amplifi and will be responsible for the agency’s strategic progress and business growth, nationally. She will also focus on developing and leading significant tools and capabilities within Carat to help deliver enhanced integrated solutions to clients. Speaking on her appointment, Iyer said: “I am delighted to have Anita Kotwani join our team at Dentsu Aegis Network India. In her new role, Anita will help futureproof Carat India as the agency gets ready to take on the new opportunities that the changing market dynamics has to offer.”
Anand Bhadkamkar
Added Anand Bhadkamkar, CEO, DAN India: “Anita is an industry veteran. She is known for her dedication and diligence and has worked across multiple categories including consumer durables, financial services, FMCG and other MNC brands. I wish her all the luck as she charts fresh new path for Carat India, beginning now,”
Elaborating on her mandate, Kotwani said: “Carat was the world’s first media agency to form with the belief that media has the power to transform businesses and this holds true even in today’s times. It is indeed Redefining Media. With DAN’s unique operating model under its single P&L structure, one can draw on the capabilities of its sister companies – including that of its dedicated OOH, Digital, Performance, Marketing Effectiveness and Creative agencies, to access world class specialisms and create bespoke teams to meet client specific needs. There is scale, specialisation and integration at the core, and with my expertise in leading client relationships and growing diversified offerings, I am super excited to lead the Carat brand for India.”
Veteran advertising professional Shripad Kulkarni has been leading consulting assignments in the fiels of strategy, content and adsales. Having helmed teams at Carat, Percept Media and Vizeum and also running a media training and consultancy company called M:Ideas which was bought over by Carat Integra, Kulkarni is set to launch AdXforce, an end-to-end software solution for adsales, which facilitates sales process, Call calendar management and CRM.
Using AdXforce, Kulkarni undertook the unenviable task of forecasting the festive season spends for MxMIndia. This is the first of a three-part series. The first focuses on print, and the other two will be on television and other media (outdoor, radio and digital). This report is part of a comprehensive white paper the veteran professional and his team have worked on
Read on…
So, how did the All India festive 2019 Kick Start till Shraadh period go?
Again, we must note that the government infusion had not set in by then, and ad Industry had just got out of an additional adspends on TV due to ICC World Cup.
:: In keeping with the past year trend, Print Innovations grew at a
healthy 11%
:: Retail and Personal care grew in Print
:: Significant drop over 2019 levels in Newspapers SQC by 10%. Shradh was also a washout for print.
:: Other than Retail, all other volume contributors seem to be holding on to their spends for the Diwali phase.
:: So what’s the Outlook for festive 2019 looking like?
:: Going by the first weekend of Diwali Phase, positive sentiment is led by new categories. High contributors are not yet too bullish. Sentiment is crucial here, and it seems to be in place for now. This should continue into the Wedding/Holidays Season. The Diwali phase, aided by an extended 6-weeks buying season, should grow and perform better. I assume there will be no increase in rates for any media.
So, my forecast for the festive 2019 is that with a normal last-minute surge:
:: Print spends will be at around 8% below last year’s level
So what’s the bellweather Onam verdict?
Firstly, we must note that Onam was shrouded in the current slowdown. Latest positive infusion by the government set in after Onam
:: The upside:
:: Onam advertising bounced back from the low levels of 2018 due to the unfortunate floods.
:: A cautious but optimistic start to the Season with 12% more ads in Print than 2017.
:: Print dominance is visible – with growth in ads driven by long tail of advertisers and better performance than TV.
:: Services, Auto and HH products Sectors grew for TV and Services, Auto and also Auto grew for Print.
:: The downside
:: Significant drop over 2017 levels in TV 4% in GRPs and 7% on Duration
:: A 4% drop in SQC– reflecting the market sentiment at that time.
:: Print Innovations did not kick off in time for Onam season
:: Retail, Durables, Food & Bev and Personal Care – the volume drivers did not take off this Onam.
For full report, click on www.shripadkulkarni.com after 4pm today (Oct 4)
Dentsu Aegis Network has restructured its top deck in media agencies group across Carat and Vizeum. Kartik Iyer has been elevated to President, Media Brands and Amplifi.
Rajni Menon will be CEO of Carat and Joydeep Raha will be CEO of Carat Context as Himanka Das will take over as CEO, Vizeum. Shripad Kulkarni has announced his decision to move on from the group by end-December to pursue his own interest. The move does not impact Dentsu X headed by Divya Karani so far.
Ashish Bhasin
Said Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO South Asia – Dentsu Aegis Network: “To enable a more future ready product for our clients, our media agencies have been reorganised for the rapidly changing market environment under the unified leadership of Kartik Iyer who has been leading our fastest growing media agency, Carat, for over eight years now. He will be responsible for enabling the continued fast track growth of the brands and will provide senior executive council level oversight to the media brands, in addition to his Amplifi responsibilities.â€
Speaking on his appointment and on the next steps for the Media Brands, Iyer said: “I am delighted to have been given this opportunity and look forward to working with the agencies in their growth path over the years. Carat is future proofing to take on the new opportunities that the market dynamics have provided in order to be able to provide world class service to our clients… Rajni is a true blue One DAN exponent. In the past 8 years that Rajni has been with Carat, she has led some of the agency’s most significant developments in capabilities, especially in the area of ICP, CCS, CCS Planner, Multiscreen planning (TV Stack) and Digitizing of Carat, which has enabled the entire group to deliver more consumer focused and business oriented solutions and is best placed to drive it to the next level. Joydeep has been a pillar in the growth path that Carat has seen over the years, particularly in the South markets. With his focus on business growth backed by delivering integrated solutions, he has constantly been adding business for the group. Further, Himanka Das will be taking over as CEO of Vizeum. Himanka has been a part of Dentsu Aegis Network Media leadership for the last 5 years and has a proven ability in managing and growing client relationships both Multinational and Indian,†Iyer added.
Shripad Kulkarni
Speaking on Kulkarni’s exit, Bhasin said: “Shripad has contributed significantly to the growth of Vizeum in India. His focus on business and managing client relationships has enabled Vizeum to grow from strength to strength in the last two years. We wish him all the very best in his future endeavours.â€
Speaking on the future, Iyer added: “The leadership of our media group will continue to focus on delivering Business Outcomes and Digitally Ahead solutions. Over the next few weeks, each of the agencies will be setting up their plans for the coming years and you can expect some very significant initiatives in this area by each agency. Rajni, Joydeep and Himanka, as leaders of their respective media agencies, will continue to innovate the way brands are built.â€
Sony India has announced the appointment of Initiative Media, part of IPG Mediabrands network, as its new media agency for India market following a comprehensive pitch process.Initiative Media will be responsible for managing the media planning for the brand going forward. The scope of services will also include providing media planning and buying across platforms. Others in the pitch included incumbent Carat and MediaCom.
The contract will be effective June 1 for a period of two years and will involve the agency to serve the gamut of product categories which includes Bravia, Xperia, Audio, Digital Imaging and Professional Solutions.
Said Yuichi Hasegawa, Head of Marketing Communication & Retail, Sony India: “Our decision to appoint Initiative Media is reflective of the agency’s capability of understanding brand Sony and providing a strategic approach to widen audience and strengthening the market position of our brand portfolio. We look forward to working with Initiative Media and have a strong belief that together we can create success and drive our premium brand story forward†.
On the appointment, Shashi Sinha, CEO,  IPG Mediabrands, India said: “We are delighted that Sony, an extremely prestigious marketer and brand is back with Initiative. We would like to thank Sony India for reposing their faith in us. Initiative stands committed to delivering the very best for Sony’s success.â€
Leading media agency network and the Dentsu Aegis Network’s Carat has released its updated Global Ad Spend Report for the year 2016-17.  In Asia Pacific, the buoyant Indian advertising market continues to lead growth prospects of +12.0% in 2016 and +13.9% in 2017. It may be remembered that according to its findings published in April 2016 (see story here: http://www.mxmindia.com/2016/04/12-adspends-growth-in-2016-carat/), Carat had predicted the same numbers: 12% in 2016 and 13.9 in 2017.
Ashish Bhasin
Says Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO South Asia at Dentsu Aegis Network, Chairman Posterscope and MKTG Asia Pacific: “Carat had anticipated that the advertising spends in India will grow by 12% in 2016 and in our latest forecast, we continue to maintain that. This makes India one of the fastest growing markets in APAC and the world. We also anticipate that given the tailwinds through the macro economic factors, GST and other reforms, 2017 will have an even better growth of 13.9%. Digital will continue to be the fastest growing medium, accelerating both its growth rate and its relative market share, in 2017. We expect the digital growth to be about 31.5% in 2016 and to accelerate to nearly 40% in 2017. Mobile will drive the digital growth immensely and India will transform from a “Mobile First†to a “Mobile Only†market very rapidly, aided by better broadband penetration and drop in data rates. What is also unique about India is that all types of media, including print, still continue to grow, albeit at different rates. This is the first time an in-depth, realistic analysis of this magnitude has been done for our market and I am sure, in consonance with its leadership position, Carat will continue to provide the industry with accurate and realistic market information. This not only helps our clients get a good preview to the forthcoming year but also helps us devise our business strategy by continuing to be at the cutting edge of changes and not only predicting tomorrow but in many ways influencing it for our business and our clients.â€
Meanwhile, based on data received from 59 markets across the Americas, Asia Pacific and EMEA, Carat’s latest global forecasts show that advertising spend will reach US$548.2 billion in 2016, accounting for a +4.4% year-on-year growth. The healthy outlook is fuelled by a buoyant 2016, marked by high-interest media events including the UEFA EURO championship, the Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympics, as well as the upcoming US presidential elections.
Leading media services agency network Carat has predicted a 12 per cent growth in adspends in India in 2016. Unlike growth in the other BRIC markets – Brazil, Russia and China – advertising expenditure in India continues to accelerate, notes the report. Following a buoyant year in 2015 with a growth of 11 per cent, 2016 has begun on a positive note, the report says. This has been supported by T20 Cricket World Cup and the state elections. Meanwhile, Carat’s first forecasts for 2017 predict continuing strong growth for the advertising market in India with an estimated increase of 13.9% and expected favourable economic conditions in which advertisers vie for consumers’ attention.
According to the report, television advertising revenues are forecast to grow by 12.3% in 2016, supported by strong spending from e-commerce companies and FMCG brands. While TV is expected to remain dominant for many years to come, advertisers are increasingly utilising online video as an invaluable complement, the study notes, adding that the share of total digital advertising spend in India is still relatively low at 8.9% (2016).
On the print sector, the report says that unlike in other markets, positive newspaper advertising spend growth is expected to continue at 10.5% in 2016, primarily due to investment from e-commerce, automotive and a small contribution from government spending. Retail advertisers also continue to spend on the print media.
Meanwhile, Carat has also publishe its first forecast for worldwide advertising expenditure in 2017, combined with its latest forecasts for 2016 and actual figures for 2015, showing positive global outlook led by the continued investment in Digital media spending. Based on data received from 59 markets across the Americas, Asia Pacific and EMEA, Carat’s global forecasts highlights that advertising spend will reach US$538 billion in 2016, accounting for a 4.5% year-on-year increase. Fuelled by high-interest media events taking place during the year – including the US presidential elections, Rio 2016 Olympics and Paralympics and the UEFA EURO 2016 championship – the positive outlook for 2016 is predicted to continue into 2017, with Carat’s forecast highlighting a consistently strong year-on-year global advertising growth of 4.5%.
Carat’s forecasts reconfirm the rise of digital as the established driver of global advertising spend growth. Powered by the upsurge of Mobile (+37.9%), Online Video (+34.7%) and Social Media (+29.8%) in 2016, the strength of Digital is expected to continue to grow at double digit prediction levels of +15.0% this year, and a further +13.6% in 2017. Overall, Carat predicts the upsurge of digital to account for 27.0% of advertising spend in 2016 and extend significantly to 29.3% in 2017, reaching US$161 billion globally. Mobile continues to show the highest spend growth across all media in 2016, with a year-on-year estimated increase at +37.9% in 2016.
In 2015 all regions reported positive growth, from Western Europe at +2.8%, +4.3% in North America, +3.6% in Asia Pacific and Latin America at +11.0%. Regional confidence is predicted to continue in most regions in 2016, despite volatility in some individual markets. In 2016, the North American advertising market remains strong with a solid growth of +4.6%, with the upcoming presidential elections solely expected to generate US$6 billion advertising spend in the US. Western Europe’s sustained positive recovery driven by solid growth in the UK and Spain in 2015 is expected to continue in 2016 and 2017 at +3.1%. Despite a decline in global growth forecasts due to China and Brazil’s economic volatility, Asia Pacific and Latin America advertising markets remain strong in 2016, achieving +4.4% and +10.5% year-on-year growth respectively. Carat also reports an encouraging outlook for 2017 across all regions including Central & Eastern Europe, as Russia’s economy is expected to stabilise from 2016.
By media, digital continues to be the star performer for growth level globally with Hong Kong & Estonia now joining the list of 12 markets where Digital is now the principle media used based on spend. The US, Germany, Taiwan and Austria are predicted to join this list in 2018. Whilst Digital is constantly closing the gap, TV continues to command the majority of market share with a steady 42.0% in 2015 and spend is predicted to grow by +3.1% this year as the Olympic Games and US elections are predicted to generate significant TV viewership across various markets. In addition, Carat’s forecasts reconfirm the steady decline in Print* in 2016 and into 2017 with newspapers declining by -5.4% and magazines by -1.7% in 2016 whilst highlighting positive year-on-year growth in 2016 for all other media, including Outdoor (+3.4%), Radio (+2.2%) and Cinema (+2.8%), with the latter expected to grow further at +5.0% in 2017.
Media communications specialist Dentsu Aegis Network has wonthe media mandate of Popees Baby Care products that manufacture the finest natural clothing for newborns and kids in the age group of 1-6 years. Carat will handle the account from its Kochi office. It won the account in a multi-agency pitch. Maxus was the incumbent on the account.
Popees is a Kerala based company founded by Shaju Thomas, a young and passionate entrepreneur with the vision to bring the finest and most fashionable children’s clothing into the mass consumer market. The company, which began in the year 2005, has various brands under its portfolio including Ourkids, Pomees, Junior Popees and Vanchris.
Shaju Thomas, Managing Director of Popees Baby Care says, “We welcome Carat Media to the Popees family as we look forward to makingbrand Popees more reachable to our customers, keeping the vision of the company intact. Carat’s differentiated media approach made us re-think about our overall media strategy and we decided to make our journey along with the dedicated Carat team.â€
Joydeep Raha, senior VP – Carat South said, “We are delighted and honored to havePopeeson board as our esteemed client. Our Carat Kochi team, led by MrAnanth Narayan, did a remarkable job in demonstrating customized solutions in line with their tasks. We look forward to partnering with Popeesto take them to new heights in the future.â€
The much-regarded billings report for India has been released by RECMA. The Indian media agency business grew 12 percent in 2011 with a total billings of US$ 5644 million.
Group M’s Mindshare media agency tops RECMA’s India billings report for 2011 with US$ 1055million, growing 10 percent over its 2010 billings. Madison Media is second 630mn, growing 15 percent. Maxus, Loderstar UM and Lintas Media Group are rank third, fourth and fifth respectively.
ZenithOptimedia saw the highest growth with 40 percent over the previous year, as per the RECMA report. At least three agencies saw a degrowth. Media Direction went down 29 percent, MPG down 20 percent and TME dropped 15 percent.
The combined billings of Dentsu and Aegis agencies Carat and Vizeum would put the new entity at #11 with US$ 250 million.
Last week, MxMIndia had reported RECMA’s global billings data and rankings (see Link: http://www.mxmindia.com/2012/07/starcom-tops-recmas-global-billings-rankings-omd-is-2/).
By A Correspondent
